Streamlined computer management and predictable costs – IT Equipment as a Service covers the entire IT lifecycle
Through IT Equipment as a Service, organisational units can entrust UIT with responsibility for their IT equipment. Photo: Mikael Wallerstedt
It began as an idea to make the university administration’s centralised IT management available throughout Uppsala University.
The aim was to relieve departments and other organisational units of the need to manage IT procurement, support and security updates themselves, while also giving them more predictable costs.
The result was IT Equipment as a Service, which is now used in several areas of the university.
The idea originated from what was once known as SAIT, the university administration’s centralised management of staff computers: ”How can we make this available to more parts of the university, rather than only central university administration?”
The concept was tested in a pilot project. The experience gained from the pilot then formed the basis for IT Equipment as a Service (ITUT).
- SAIT was the inspiration. We identified both a need and demand for providing this service to other areas of the university, and the pilot project enabled us to evaluate the model together with the organisation, says Per Lindgren, head of group for client support at University IT Services (UIT).
A comprehensive solution for IT equipment
Through IT Equipment as a Service, an organisation can entrust UIT with responsibility for their IT equipment. There is no need to take inventory, purchase equipment, install updates or manage IT security. Instead, they receive a comprehensive service and support package. Put simply, it is a subscription service for leasing IT equipment.
- Under the service, UIT takes responsibility for managing, supporting and replacing the equipment throughout the contract period. We fully manage the computers, and users of IT Equipment as a Service receive reliable equipment that can easily be replaced if something should go wrong. This makes it easier the recieving organisation to plan for their IT costs. Most of all it should give responsible partners a peace of mind, as they know that UIT will resolve any problems that might happen. At the same time, Uppsala University benefits from a more structured and secure computing environment, says Per.
Financial and administrative efficiency
Organisations using the service include Campus Management at Blåsenhus, the Department of Education, the Department of Scandinavian Languages and the Department of Mathematics. The newly established Department of Police Work has also signed up for the service.
- Requirements for regular security updates and IT equipment management have increased. Departments currently carry a considerable responsibility in this area, and several of the organisations that have contacted us about ITUT have highlighted IT security management as an important issue, says Per Lindgren.
- The cost of ITUT covers both the equipment and our work on administration, management and support. In our discussions with our partners we make it clear that UIT does not make any profit on the hardware provided through the service. By bringing equipment, administration and support together under one service, we can improve efficiency for UIT, participating organisations and the University as a whole.
Develop together
UIT’s next step is to continue reviewing the service’s processes and procedures and continue the regular dialogue with departments and other organisational units about the service’s terms and content .
- We want to maintain a constructive dialogue about what our partner organisationals might want and need going forward. This will help us understand how best to develop the service in response to their requirements. There are already many ideas about how the service could be improved further, including the equipment itself, administration, support and working methods more broadly, says Per.
Martin Löf Nyqvist